Budding Love
by Haigara Studios
Summary: Love, something Naruto Uzumaki has always wanted. He thought it would come from Sakura Haruno. But perhaps he was wrong. Taking place after the Invasion of Pain. Warning: This story is Rated M FOR A REASON! It contains Lemon, Smut, Naru X Mebu, and Milf. NSFW! This is a rewrite of Mature Bud.
1. Chapter 1

~Chapter 1~

"No Naruto, for the hundredth fucking time, I do not want to go out with you! I don't care if you made reservations at the nicest restaurant in the village. Now please leave, my mother will be home soon and I need to get ready for work." With that she slammed the door shut.

Sakura's words rang in his ears as he turned from her door. ' _Why do I keep asking? It's been 8 years, and she had never seemed interested in me. Do I really think the next time she'll say yes? I just don't know anymore.'_ Lost in thought Naruto wandered into the market district. Despite his reservations at the Silver Swan, he still found his way to Ichiraku Ramen. Sitting at the far end of the bar he half-heartedly waved at Teuchi. The old man gave him a warm smile and got to work on his regular order.

As he sat eating his meal Naruto looked up when he heard others enter the stand. It was Team 10, sans Asuma. Ino, Shikamaru and Choji sat at the other end of the bar. None of the three initially noticed Naruto. It was only when Teuchi walked over to the young man as he was finishing his bowl did Ino look over and realise who was there.

Teuchi was genuinely surprised when, instead of ordering another bowl, Naruto simply thanked the man for the food and left the stand after paying. Ino, Teuchi and a half attentive Shikamaru, watched as the blonde walked silently away from the stand.

Naruto wandered aimlessly through the village, something he had always done. However now when people stopped him it wasn't to yell or hurt him. No it was often to thank him or say hello or ask for an autograph. ' _Yeah, I am the Hero of Hidden Leaf. Everyone here loves me.'_ He mused. ' _Then why do I still feel so alone?'_ Lamenting to himself he slid his hands into the back pocket of the pants catching himself off guard when his right hand touched something. Pulling it out he smiled sadly to himself at the scroll in his hand. It was a storage scroll and held a bouquet of chestnut blossoms, Sakura's favorite. Deciding he had no need of them, and since he couldn't return them, he headed in the direction of Sakura's home.

* * *

Mebuki Haruno was rounding the corner to her home when something caught her eye. A young man was standing in front of her house. One look and she knew who he was. He was Naruto Uzumaki, a teammate of her daughter. She knew he had a crush on Sakura, and seeing the bouquet of flowers in his hand, she deduced he was there to ask her daughter out on a date again. She felt somewhat bad for the boy, he had gone through hell and back to impress her daughter for years and for some reason Sakura never gave him the time of day. Watching from the corner she waited for him to knock on the door. She was very surprised when instead he simply dropped the flowers on the doorstep and walked away. She was sure she saw him say something before disappearing back the way he came. She was also convinced she had seen tears in his eyes. Walking up to the door she picked up the flowers.

"Chestnut blossoms, Sakura's favorite." She tucked them gently under her arm and unlocked the door. Stepping inside she heard the upstairs shower running. She knew her daughter had work tonight, so she went about quickly putting away the groceries she had bought. She was in the process of placing the flowers in a vase when her daughter came downstairs.

"Alright mom, I'm off to work. I'll be home late probably." Sakura announced.

"Ok dear." Mebuki responded. "Oh Sakura?"

"Yeah mom?"

"Do you know Naruto Uzumaki's address?"

"No why?" Replied a confused Sakura.

"I'd like to send him a thank you for these lovely flowers he left at our door." Mebuki gestured to the flowers she was fiddling with.

"He left us flowers?" The girl walked over to her mother. "Wait those are-"

"Chestnut blossoms, yes. I saw him leave them at the door just as I was walking home."

"How did he know?"

"I'd guess he asked Miss Yamanaka. She was your best friend, and her family are florists."

"Wow, that doesn't matter." Sakura said in a huff. "I have to go to work. Goodbye mother." The girl stormed out the door.

' _Hmm maybe I'll ask Lady Hokage tomorrow.'_ Mebuki thought to herself before heading into the kitchen to make some tea.

* * *

The blaring of his alarm brought Naruto out of his slumber. As he sat up the world around him spun and all at once the previous night came rushing back. After leaving the flowers at Sakura's he'd somehow found his way home. There he'd found several gifts including a bottle of strong liquor. What had followed is somewhat unclear to the blonde. But based on the ninety-nine percent empty bottle on the nightstand, he had made some mistakes.

His head pounding Naruto slowly got up and made his way to the bathroom. Stripping down and stepping into the shower he was finally able to think clearly. What was he doing? He began to evaluate everything that had happened since his fight with Pain. And while yes he was the strongest he had ever been, he was no closer to bringing peace to the world or stopping the Akatsuki.

He was drying his hair off when he heard a knock at the door. Opening the door Naruto was surprised to see an Anbu standing outside his door. But this person looked nothing like the Anbu operatives he had seen before. This one wore heavier armor, a black balaclava, and a very unique mask. It was unlike anything Naruto had ever seen, black and made of some sort of plastic or metal. And unlike Konoha's traditional Anbu masks, which took the form of various animals, this mask had additional plates attached to it giving it the appearance of a stylized skull. Breaking his attention from the mask Naruto spoke.

"May I help you?"

"Follow these instructions." The Anbu spoke almost robotically as he handed Naruto a scroll.

"Who are these instructions from?" As the blonde asked the question, the Anbu formed a half-Tiger Seal and seemed to disappear right before his eyes. He stared at the spot the Anbu had been standing before turning around and returning to his apartment. He sat on his couch and broke the seal on the scroll.


	2. Chapter 2

~Chapter 2~

Mebuki sat in the waiting room outside the Hokage's office. As best as she could tell she would be next to see Lady Tsunade. Since she hadn't scheduled the meeting ahead of time, she was forced to wait until the Hokage had a bit of free time. Which apparently she didn't have much of. After what felt like the entire day she was finally allowed to enter the office. Mebuki was surprised to see the Hokage sitting with her head on the desk.

"Ahem, madam Hokage?"

A single raised hand silenced her. The silence hung in the air for a solid minute before the Hokage shouted.

"Fuck this job! How did Grandfather and old Hiruzen do this?" She stood with a growl and stared out the great windows. "So Mebuki-san, what can I do for you?"

"Hokage-sama, I wish to know the address of Naruto Uzumaki. He left a wonderful gift at my home and I wish to thank him."

"And what was this gift?"

"A lovely bouquet of chestnut blossoms. My family has always been fond of them."

"I see. Well unfortunately Naruto Uzumaki is presently unavailable. But I will pass on your thanks to him."

"May I not speak to him Lady Hokage?" Mebuki's voice rose slightly.

"It is not that you ' _may'_ not, it is that you ' _can'_ not, at this time." Tsunade's voice was tight and stern. "He is unavailable to everyone, not just you. He is being tested. Even I will not speak to him for some time."

"Oh, I see. Well I would still like to thank him in person. So please let me know when I may speak with him."

Tsunade sighed. "Very well Mebuki-san. Now please I have a mountain of work to do."

"Yes my Lady. Best of luck." She left the office not sure if she had won anything.

* * *

Naruto's world exploded as a fist impacted his nose and sent him sprawling to the ground.

"Up you whelp! Up!" The Commandant shouted at him, as he had for the past six months.

When the blonde had followed the instructions in the scroll and found his way into a world he couldn't even believe. The Konohagakure Anbu Shadowguard; also known as Konoha's Wolfpack. A one hundred percent covert unit of the Anbu Special Forces. Their members are unknown even to other Anbu divisions. Only the members of the Anbu Command and their Shadowguard brethren know the identities of the members of the Shadowguard.

Naruto clambered to his feet and stood across from his sparring partner. He had no choice, there was only days till the thirteenth elimination fights. And only four weeks left in total. He chambered his arms and readied for the next exchange. His opponent moved first going in low trying to take out his knee. Naruto slid his leg back shifting his stance and threw out a short jab. The brown haired boy blocked the shot with forearm but allowed himself to open his guard. Naruto slid his leading leg in between the boy's feet and behind his left foot. Throwing his weight into the boy he tripped him and following through he pinned him to the ground.

"Yield!" The blonde said confidently.

The boy sighed. "I yield Uzumaki."

At his words Naruto stood from the mount. He offered a hand to the boy.

"Come on Nakamura. Maybe next time." Nakamura took his hand and stood.

"Yeah next time." He smiled but Naruto saw it. Nakamura had just made it through from the last elimination fight. He'd finished fifteenth and only just barely. If he didn't finish thirteenth or better this week he'd be out of the class. And the boy had accepted that he wouldn't do it. Naruto wanted to say something but he couldn't he had to focus on graduating. He'd finished eighth in the last fight. Which would be fine enough to get him to the final elimination. But he wanted to be sure of his graduation. The Shadowguard were given the best training and resources, he had to become one. Only the top three on fight day were guaranteed to graduate. Since during the elimination fights you can only challenge up to two ranks above you. Meaning that only rank five and above could threaten the top three and even if they lost, they'd still be in the top seven when all was said and done.

"Alright whelps! Line up!" The trainees ran and quickly lined up. "In two days three more of you will be left behind. Only the absolute best will be allowed to don the mask. But we are not ignorant to potential. From this week onward, anyone who is eliminated will be guaranteed acceptance into next year's class."

An excited murmur went through the class. It was a near certainty that those cut from the class wouldn't be selected again. But to be guaranteed a second chance, that was big. Everyone smiled, those near the bottom smiled because it meant that it wouldn't be in vain should they be cut, and the rest smiled because it meant that they had a greater chance of serving with friends in time.

"That's enough arselings." A loud voice split the air and everyone fell silent.

" _Attention! Commander on station!_ " The Commandant barked. And everybody in the training room snapped to a curt attention as the Shadowguard Commander Ai Shinwo stepped forward.

"Alright you pieces of shite. Let's see what you are made of, eh?"


	3. Chapter 3

~Chapter 3~

The wagon rattled up a slight incline before leveling out. The recruits around Naruto were chatting in low voices about where they were going. None of them could see through the heavy black canvas that covered the wagons. After a near thirty minute ride, the wagon came to a stop and the commandant's head appeared through the flap.

"Alright whelps. Iga, Naga, you two out." Everyone in the wagon knew better than to ask any questions. A Shadowguard is told what they need to know. If they need to more they find out, not ask their superiors. The two men, well boys really as neither had seen their fourteenth birthday, climbed out of the wagon before it rattled on. An hour and a half dozen stops later the commandant poked his head through.

"Uzumaki, Itami, out." Naruto and a young man with shrewd eyes clambered out of the wagon. No sooner had the feet hit the ground, the wagon rolled away leaving the pair standing in an alleyway with a Shadowguard Sergeant.

"Alright you two. Here's the sitrep. You have six hours to return to base. You may use whatever means you choose. But know this there are Operation Teams scattered all over the city. Get caught by one you're done, get spotted you're done, get your cover blown you're done. But make it back to base and you might just have a chance. Now move." The sergeant made the half-Tiger Seal and faded into the shadows. Leaving the two trainees standing alone.

"So how do we get back to somewhere we don't even know where it or we are." Itami asked looking up towards sky.

"We find our way. Well I'm going to find my way." Naruto leapt up the rooftops.

A truly amazing sight struck him. Spread out before him was Ember City, capital city of the Land of Fire. Three thousand square miles, home to almost thirty-eight million people, and the center of the civilian world. Somewhere within an hour and half carriage ride is a facility that no one knows about. And he had six hours to find it.

* * *

Two operatives, twenty meters, no doubt armed with detectors. Naruto crouched inside a small crate. This was going to be hard, they would detect him once he got close enough. He'd been watching them for nearly a half hour, they didn't patrol they just watched the area. He had to get moving, they'd notice the crate soon. He waited until they were both looking away before slipping out the back. He had realized that the Operation Teams weren't just there to watch for the recruits, they were the key to finding the base. They weren't stationed randomly, not all of them, some were located at key intersections blocking the path you weren't supposed to take. Most would scout around the teams, or attempt to get past them. But the shinobi world exists in between the lines.

He looked down the path he had come from. There were two more teams that had guided him to where he was. The team in front of him was posted overlooking the intersection, they would see anything that crossed it. He had to move quickly and at the exact right time. Their detectors would be standard issue, which meant they had a set refresh rate. Every forty-four seconds they effectively shut off for one and a quarter seconds while the system resets. He couldn't be sure exactly when the reset happened, but while they were good at looking like they weren't watching in a pattern, they were. Every now and again they would both look squarely at the intersection. That was his opening.

In that moment he could rush under the awning at the bottom of the building. He'd be clear of their line of sight. And if his idea was correct, their sensors would be down. He braced against the wall to his back and watched.

One-one thousand, Two-one thousand, Three-one thousand, the seconds counted by. At twenty-four seconds they both turned their gaze to the center of the intersection.

' _ **Now!**_ '

He pushed off the wall with all his might and ran, ran harder than he'd ever run before. He had good conditioning, so he could run for a good while. He was not, however, a sprinter. But he sprinted nonetheless. His legs were on fire, but he pushed it down. He passed through the shadow of the awning and kept going till he hit the alley on the other side. A part of him knew he was in the clear, but he took only a second to catch his breath before booking it down the alleyway. A Shadowguard was the best.

* * *

' _Week twenty-nine. Day six. There are only ten of us left, in eight days there will be seven. Those seven will become part of the most elite unit in the world. Tomorrow we're being allowed to return to our homes for a two day leave. I probably won't go, it's not like there's anyone waiting for me.'_ Naruto wrote in a small journal. He sat on his bunk, deep underground. He sighed and leaned his head back against the wall. Soon lost in thought he barely heard Ijo's voice.

"Hey Uzumaki! The Commandant wants us all in the briefing room."

"Alright." The blonde nodded before leaping off the bunk.

Five minutes later the remaining ten recruits stood in two rows of five. The Commandant paced in front of them.

"Alright, whelps. Tomorrow you will all be allowed to go back to your homes for two days. Well more accurately you're to return to here in 72 hours. Any who don't will be considered dropouts. You will suffer no repercussions if you do not return. But if you do, you forfeit your right to try again. At this point if you don't have the heart there's no point in trying again." He took a breath.

"It's at this time that I will an important truth about your final Shadowguard vows." The assembled recruits all began to murmur. "Enough. The truth is that once you take your final vows; you will be resigned from active duty as a shinobi of the Leaf, and will begin life as a civilian here in Ember City. And now I need each and every one of you to form a half-Tiger Seal."

At his words most of them began loudly asking questions. The only ones who don't are the three occupying the gold token slots; Tatsuma Ijo, Hayate "Six-Shades" Kirameki, and Naruto Uzumaki. Those three wordlessly formed the half-Tiger Seal as instructed. A full Shadowguard stepped up to each and completed the mirrored seal. Naruto groaned as he felt a tightness in his chest. He looked to the other two and could see that they were going through the same thing.

"What has just happened, is that we've placed a seal jutsu on each of your hearts. You ever breathe a word about the Shadowguard to someone outside our organization, the seal will fry your heart in an instant. And then it will disappear, it will look like your heart simply gave out."

It took some time but eventually all the recruits had the seal placed on them. Some needed more coaxing than others but all did it. With that complete, the Commandant dismissed them all to pack for their free weekend. Naruto stood at rest as the rest exited.

"Uzumaki, what do you want?" The Commandant asked.

Naruto snapped to attention. "Sir. Inquiry. Is it required that we return home this weekend?"

"Do you not wish to return Uzumaki?"

"No sir. Permission to speak freely?"

"Granted."

"It's not that I don't miss my home. However, there isn't really anyone there for me to return to. So if I'm to spend this weekend alone, I'd rather do it here where I can be productive."

The Commandant looked the young man up and down. "Well I can understand your reasoning Uzumaki, however we need time to prepare for the final evaluations so we request that all recruits are away from the base at the time. So to answer your question; no, you aren't required to return home. But you can't stay here."

"Understood Sir."

"Very good, dismissed."

"Sir." Naruto saluted and left the room.

' _I guess I can go back to the village. Should probably tell people I'll be moving here next week.'_


End file.
